PRIMER

		Review by Kelly Parks
PRIMER - 2004 USA Release: Oct. 8, 2004 THINKFilm Rated: USA: PG-13

There are lots of bad movies where some mad scientist invents a time machine. But what would it really be like if a couple of actual engineers actually working in their garage actually built the damn thing?

PRIMER was written and directed by Shane Carruth. The story opens in a garage. Four friends, who look and talk like typical young engineers, are working on an invention. It's never especially clear what it is they're trying to build but the tech talk (speaking as a science geek) made me happy. The leader of the group is Aaron (played by writer/director Shane Carruth) and he and his best friend Abe (David Sullivan: COPELY, EXTRACTED) do the bulk of the work.

Regardless of what they were intending to build, what they end up building is a time machine. But they realize what they've done in a slow build up kind of way that makes it feel very real. Abe gets it first and rather than just tell Aaron, he leads him up to it by presenting one piece of evidence at a time. Aaron gets it too and you think Abe has shown him everything but then he shows him one more thing in a scene that gave me chills. There were no special effects or explosions or anything spectacular – just a very real-life-feeling scene where someone presents undeniable proof of time travel.

Once you have time travel, what do you do with it? Make money, of course. Aaron and Abe use it to go back 24 hours and make stock trades knowing what's going to happen.

This sounds mundane but their caution also adds to the slice of life realism. They're trying not to let their enthusiasm and the geek thrill of time travel overwhelm their scientific approach and good judgment.

Then, just by accident, they make a small change. In other words they alter history in a slight way, something they were terrified of trying and going to great lengths to avoid. When no universe-shattering paradox results they realize they can get away with going back and changing a few things and the temptation is just too great.

These guys are best friends but all their new found wealth and power puts a strain on that. No one wants to share being the master of time and space. That thought alone makes you paranoid. What if my buddy decides to go back and make it so I never found out about time travel? What if...

What if I we take time for a

!!!SCIENCE MOMENT!!!:
These guys do worry about avoiding causing changes in the past but they were overlooking the obvious.

Let's say I travel back in time to 1977 (to see Star Wars in the theaters when it first came out). I don't talk to anyone or do anything other than sit in the theater and watch the movie. Have I avoided changing anything? No, because the whole time I was breathing. By breathing I was creating carbon dioxide molecules that didn't exist in the original version of history. It is ridiculously humanocentric to think that this change is somehow less significant (from the universe's point of view) than some alteration in human events, like changing who won the civil war. A change is a change. If one is possible then they all are.

But that's enough of that. This very cool little indie flick (which was made for about $7000) is certainly not for everyone. Non-geeks would be lost through a lot of it and much of its playing-with-big-ideas appeal would be lost as well. But if you like your sci-fi hardcore, this is the stuff. I give it four shriek girls.

This review copyright 2005 E.C.McMullen Jr.

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